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Axiem posted:
(I'm the wife) At least at the age where we both wanted to throw parties or have sleepovers with our friends it was nicer on our parents, especially, to have the parties 6 months apart. When we just wanted a quiet celebration with family or maybe just one friend we were generally OK with sharing. I imagine with actual twins they may have some mutual friends, so splitting the parties by at least a month instead of consecutive days/weekends would be easier on said friend's parents and schedules, not to mention your efforts to throw two different parties close together! Anyway, it's always good to have options. On a different note: before we had our daughter we were invited to several toddlers' birthday parties. The first one I actually went to. It ended up being an awkward assortment of people who knew the parents (family, church friends, work friends, etc.). The birthday girl was so overwhelmed to see so many different groups of people that the guests hardly saw her, she spent much of her time in her room with Grandma while her parents bounced from clique to clique. I resolved never to attend another child's birthday party unless my own (not-yet-conceived at that time) child was a friend of the birthday child. On the same note I would not feel bad at all to decline an invitation to a classmate's birthday party where my daughter didn't really hang out with the birthday kid.
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Mar 25, 2014 04:44
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I'm a huge fan of Groupon and Living Social, so I am always keeping an eye out for package deals at bounce houses or petting zoos or whatever. Anywhere the kids are kept entertained for an hour or so, and food/cake is included, is the best! And the less I have to do, the better. We have 2 kids, both born around holidays (one is Thanksgiving, one is on New Year's Eve) so attendance at their birthday parties will always be low. And I am the lame guest who always brings gift cards, purchased via my credit card points, instead of toys or something. As a mom, I'd much rather have a stack of gift cards to Target and buy my kid something really awesome than get a toy my kid might play with once then forget about and clutter up my living room.
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Mar 25, 2014 08:16
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I hate a kid birthday party because every other kid at the party gets mad that they aren't getting presents and little goodie bags never seem to placate them. My son went to his first not-his-birthday party earlier this year and even though we got him his own cool toy AND bought extra to give to the other kids, he still whined until the birthday boy's grandpa (who admittedly is very fond of Arthur) gave him one of the poor kid's balloons and a toy horsie. And for his own 2nd birthday he was so overstimulated and tired that he was no fun at all. From now on unless he expressly asks otherwise birthday parties are just a nice dinner and dessert with his grandmas.
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Mar 25, 2014 15:53
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Y'all are going to be changing your tune in a few years when you can drop your kid off at a party.
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Mar 25, 2014 17:03
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Hell yeah now that I don't have to be there I freaking love parties. Two hours of trampoline time/laser tag/rollerskating for my kid for the admission price of one gift, and I get to do whatever elsewhere. It's awesome. Now parties for my kid, on the other hand, are a bit hairier. I'm planning an outdoor party for my oldest in two weeks and praying to god the weather warms back up to normal temps. Normal for today would be 68F where we live, and we had a dusting of snow this morning. I'm desperately hoping I don't have to have these kids inside my house. 
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Mar 25, 2014 18:50
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hepscat posted:Y'all are going to be changing your tune in a few years when you can drop your kid off at a party. Lol, I suppose thats true.
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Mar 25, 2014 19:03
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Hot Dog Day #82 posted:Speaking of parties, has anyone ever been to a birthday party for twins? My girls are not old enough to have friends yet, but when the time comes I was thinking of letting them throw sperate parties so that they can each have "their day." Is this a common thing? I assume I am not reinventing the wheel or anything, but I also haven't put much thought into party etiquette yet. My nephews are twins, but they just do one big party. There's so much overlap in friends and family that it would take a lot of effort and time to do it twice.
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Mar 25, 2014 19:42
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We had a party this year for our 3-year-old. We invited 5 kids from her daycare class, I just slipped the invites in the parent mailboxes. It was in January and we had it at an indoor bounce place, and it was nice just to let them run rampant and forget about the lovely weather. She let her friends help her open her presents. :3 We didn't go nuts, we had veggies and dip, pretzels, juice and water, and cake. We made homemade play dough and put it in treat bags with cookie cutters and the play dough recipe. Anyway, the point is that it was fun and cheap and I think it's important for kids to learn those social skills.
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Mar 26, 2014 03:14
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Anyone have experience with four and a half year olds who refuse to use the potty? I seriously think my kid pulled down his pants to piss on his bed just a few hours ago. And when he is watching tv or busy he will totally forget to go to the potty, and he fights me when I ask him to. If i don't remind him he will wet or crap himself. And at night he has to wear a pullup all the time, and almost every morning its wet or have some crap in it. Arrrgh, what do i do!
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Mar 26, 2014 04:43
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Is he otherwise strong-willed? How much TV is he watching at a stretch? Overall?
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Mar 26, 2014 04:46
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Cimber posted:Anyone have experience with four and a half year olds who refuse to use the potty? I seriously think my kid pulled down his pants to piss on his bed just a few hours ago. The night time stuff is likely just age related, although it's possible he's waking up and choosing not to go in the morning. Not much to do until he decides he doesn't like having a wet butt. The other stuff may be acting out. Our guy is going through a strong phase of saying no or saying the opposite to what we want. Fortunately, it hasn't manifested on his bathroom habits but it could definitely get there for some kids. Forgetting when they're engrossed in something is also just a learning thing. Accidents just happen at that age because they haven't learned the body signals to anticipate and they haven't learned the self-control /modesty to want to avoid the accident more than squeezing every last moment out of whatever fun thing they're doing.
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Mar 26, 2014 05:16
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We've had good luck with this vibrating watch that reminds kids to go to the bathroom on a certain schedule: http://www.amazon.com/WobL-Alarm-Vibrating-Watch-Blue/dp/B003Y59PHC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395807818&sr=8-1&keywords=wobl+watch It's pretty cheaply made, though. I think we've gone through at least 4 of them since last summer.
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Mar 26, 2014 05:22
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Ben Davis posted:My nephews are twins, but they just do one big party. There's so much overlap in friends and family that it would take a lot of effort and time to do it twice. Yeah we definitely won't be having two parties in the future, we're probably gonna have to have a kids party and adult party anyway so it'd be three parties total then.
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Mar 26, 2014 07:13
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Kalenn Istarion posted:Forgetting when they're engrossed in something is also just a learning thing. Accidents just happen at that age because they haven't learned the body signals to anticipate and they haven't learned the self-control /modesty to want to avoid the accident more than squeezing every last moment out of whatever fun thing they're doing. This. This is Tim even now, and he's almost 6. He always *just* gets to the bathroom in time--and when he was 4.5 like the child in question, he still regularly didn't make it. Especially with poop. I think when they're young, all potty stuff is normal, no matter how infuriating. For instance, I have a friend who's daughter wet the bed well into first grade, and her ped told her at the time that bed wetting through second grade isn't uncommon and not considered a medical issue until they are older than that.
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Mar 26, 2014 14:20
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Is he in a preschool or daycare? Peer pressure can be a big motivator, plus a chance to see the right behavior modeled by kids his age. 4.5 is a little late for outright defiance when it comes to the potty. Forgetting because they're into something - setting a timer works really well. I also just have certain times they have to go, like if we're going to watch TV, potty first. Going out somewhere, potty first. At first it's a fight but pretty soon it's just second nature.
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Mar 26, 2014 17:20
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Is it bad that I am in no way pushing potty training on my kid? He's 3 1/2, goes on the potty morning and night for a special treat, and we've introduced underpants for the nightly dog walk (he gets a super special treat if he keeps them dry during the walk). But beyond that, I am in no rush to eliminate diapers. I guess I am lazy, diapers are super convenient, and there is no real need to push him into underpants. Is there?
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Mar 26, 2014 17:55
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If you have any intention of sending him to preschool, almost none of them in my area would accept a kid his age that wasn't potty-trained, outside of special needs situations.
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Mar 26, 2014 18:24
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Chickalicious posted:If you have any intention of sending him to preschool, almost none of them in my area would accept a kid his age that wasn't potty-trained, outside of special needs situations. That's what ours said (it's run by the school district) but it turns out they accept kids no matter what they just want to put some fear into parents I guess? We really didn't have any trouble and essentially no accidents since so I guess I shouldn't complain.
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Mar 26, 2014 18:29
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Out local Montessori stats taking them at age one and apparently they do a lot of potty training there as well, so I hope that makes the process easier for us.
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Mar 26, 2014 18:34
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VorpalBunny posted:Is it bad that I am in no way pushing potty training on my kid? He's 3 1/2, goes on the potty morning and night for a special treat, and we've introduced underpants for the nightly dog walk (he gets a super special treat if he keeps them dry during the walk). But beyond that, I am in no rush to eliminate diapers. I guess I am lazy, diapers are super convenient, and there is no real need to push him into underpants. Is there? Nope. Liam's three now, and I'm letting him lead the way. He goes sometimes, sometimes not. I'm not pushing anything; lessons learned from Tim. My district's early childhood center, where my kids went/currently go, takes kids starting at two, and does not care about their potty trained status. They will work with your child if they are training, and change diapers if they aren't.
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Mar 26, 2014 19:12
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hepscat posted:Is he in a preschool or daycare? Peer pressure can be a big motivator, plus a chance to see the right behavior modeled by kids his age. 4.5 is a little late for outright defiance when it comes to the potty. He is in preschool. Turns five in August, and off to Kindergarten in september. I just hope he does not wet himself at school then, because they may kick him out. Ugh.
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Mar 26, 2014 20:21
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In case people didn't notice it, the Atlantic has an article about how modern parenting is destroying our children (if you haven't read enough of them already). It's a reasonable read.
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Mar 27, 2014 03:03
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Cimber posted:Anyone have experience with four and a half year olds who refuse to use the potty? I seriously think my kid pulled down his pants to piss on his bed just a few hours ago. Our youngest was like that, until, of all things, we went to IKEA. He desperately wanted to go into Smäland, and we told him that if he went, he'd have to wear underwear, since they don't let kids who are in pullups or diapers in. He pulled on his underwear, and aside from a random accident here or there, has been trained ever since. He knew what he needed to do already, he just wasn't doing it. Until that point, there was nothing that would get him interested in it - rewards didn't work, he didn't mind being wet or messy, he'd only use the toilet when told to, under protest. I swear, with some kids, it's finding the one thing that oddly matters to them that they can't do unless they're in underwear.
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Mar 27, 2014 06:45
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Dad', who else here is pissed off by parenting magazines that only talk about mom. Parent's Magazine is a prime example of this. Pictures of mom, articles written for mom, no discussion of dad. I remember one headliner from a few months back that said "What to do when he won't help you with the kids" 
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Mar 27, 2014 12:45
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Blue Moonlight posted:Our youngest was like that, until, of all things, we went to IKEA. He desperately wanted to go into Smäland, and we told him that if he went, he'd have to wear underwear, since they don't let kids who are in pullups or diapers in. He pulled on his underwear, and aside from a random accident here or there, has been trained ever since. He knew what he needed to do already, he just wasn't doing it. Oh, he wears undies all the time during the day, only has a pullup on at night. Its just that he doesnt care if he pisses himself and runs around with wet clothes.
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Mar 27, 2014 12:46
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Axiem posted:In case people didn't notice it, the Atlantic has an article about how modern parenting is destroying our children (if you haven't read enough of them already). It's a reasonable read. To sum up: You're a bad parent and your children are pussies because you don't let them play in literally garbage.
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Mar 27, 2014 13:05
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Axiem posted:In case people didn't notice it, the Atlantic has an article about how modern parenting is destroying our children (if you haven't read enough of them already). It's a reasonable read. I think those adventure playgrounds sound pretty awesome. My kids would eat that poo poo up; they already unpack part of our firewood pile and build Stonehenge/a pirate ship/a dinosaur pen/ on the driveway with logs and scraps of shelving and whatnot from the garage. It's their favorite thing to do outside.
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Mar 27, 2014 13:56
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Cimber posted:Dad', who else here is pissed off by parenting magazines that only talk about mom. Parent's Magazine is a prime example of this. Pictures of mom, articles written for mom, no discussion of dad. I remember one headliner from a few months back that said "What to do when he won't help you with the kids" The question you need to ask yourself is, how should a magazine for dads look like, and what kind of advertisments/sponsors you'd need to get one up and keep it running. What kind of stories would I run? - How to get sleep. Mostly stories about sleep. Sleep is good. Why is sleep so awesome? - How not to burn out in your job due to lack of sleep. - How to get things done while you feel exhausted. - Building stuff for your kids, like toys etc. (I'd love that) - How to have something resembling a sex life with your partner, although you both feel terribly exhausted, sleepless and hung over for the last year(s) and you'd rather try to sleep than have sexy time. - How to successfully fit your well-being and mental stability in the 1 1/2h that you have each evening before you have to go to bed.
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Mar 27, 2014 14:05
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Cimber posted:Dad', who else here is pissed off by parenting magazines that only talk about mom. Parent's Magazine is a prime example of this. Pictures of mom, articles written for mom, no discussion of dad. I remember one headliner from a few months back that said "What to do when he won't help you with the kids" Yeah as a stay at home dad this in general is just really annoying. Not the magazine in particular but just everything for babies/toddlers is mom focused. I understand the demographics of it and stuff but it's still annoying being the only dad at library story time or whatever. AlistairCookie posted:I think those adventure playgrounds sound pretty awesome. My kids would eat that poo poo up; they already unpack part of our firewood pile and build Stonehenge/a pirate ship/a dinosaur pen/ on the driveway with logs and scraps of shelving and whatnot from the garage. It's their favorite thing to do outside. Yeah I'd be down for that if we had something like that here. Sounds fun.
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Mar 27, 2014 14:12
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greatn posted:To sum up: You're a bad parent and your children are pussies because you don't let them play in literally garbage. More like: you're a bad patent and your children are going to have a higher rate of issues like narcissism and separation anxiety if you literally never leave their side so that they can play and explore on their own with their peers. Besides, the outdoors is dirty, and so are things kids play in. Kids like to get dirty. I played in gross stuff as a kid because I didn't know any better, and somehow I didn't end up with sarsbolaidsvian flu. No one is suggesting that your children lick used hypodermic needles.
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Mar 27, 2014 14:48
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I'd totally take advantage of an adventure playground like that myself if we had them around here. But I think the point of the article is less about the kids "playing in garbage" and more about the kids having a free space where they don't have parents dictating to them what they should/shouldn't do. It's that old adage about how the only lessons you truly learn are the ones you figure out for yourself. A lot of kids these days aren't given a chance to figure out things from "what do I do when this other kid is being a jerk and won't share" to "agh I'm bored what do I do to stop the boredom" because the parents always step in and hand them a solution. I grew up with a lot of freedom as a kid, and I think it had a big formative influence on who I am today. I try to give my kids some of the same freedom that I had. Luckily we have friends in like-minded parents who also have no problems letting their kids out to play for hours in the neighborhood, or woods behind their home unsupervised.
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Mar 27, 2014 14:59
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AlistairCookie posted:I think those adventure playgrounds sound pretty awesome. My kids would eat that poo poo up; they already unpack part of our firewood pile and build Stonehenge/a pirate ship/a dinosaur pen/ on the driveway with logs and scraps of shelving and whatnot from the garage. It's their favorite thing to do outside. You're in St. Louis, right? Then you totally understand what I mean when I say I can't wait until our little one is old enough to take to the City Museum. While it doesn't have the "self-configuration" of the playland they article discusses, it definitely has a lot of the little nooks and crannies for kids to discover--not to mention the "danger" aspect of some of the parts.
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Mar 27, 2014 15:06
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I just find all these "Parents coddle their kids too much" articles annoying. The playground sounds pretty kickass, but it segues into nonsense about how parents make their children too safe these days, not like when we were kids, with no empirical evidence or studies. A couple of psychologists saying kids need a sense of danger, but absolutely only platitudes saying that they aren't sufficiently already getting that and that parents are raising their children into wimps. It reminds me of hacks saying "You know the problem with kids today: everyone gets a trophy." No they don't, that's stupid.
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Mar 27, 2014 15:31
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I wish they'd bring these playgrounds back.  I haven't seen one in a long time. They're sort of a decent in between of playing in garbage and having a more exciting play place. They're not modular, but they usually had a lot more fun aspects to it and did have a little more sense of danger and adventure.
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Mar 27, 2014 15:55
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Do they even make merry go rounds any more? I haven't seen one in forever
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Mar 27, 2014 15:57
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Alterian posted:I wish they'd bring these playgrounds back. They have this exact style playground a little north of Seattle in a massive park. I was pretty anti kid until I saw that playground and I realized that I might actually want kids just so I can play with them on those badass playgrounds :P http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Edward_State_Park - Linky for any Western WA goons.
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Mar 27, 2014 16:34
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Alterian posted:I wish they'd bring these playgrounds back. There's one of those near my parents house in a suburb of Charleston, SC. It rules.
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Mar 27, 2014 16:36
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Problem is some kid will get hurt being a kid, parent will turn around and sue the school/town for providing an 'unsafe' environment, town is risk averse and tears down the fun stuff and puts up a wimpy area. My town did that recently, tore down a great swingset/gym area for the kids and put in a 'safe-t-play' area. My answers to my kids crying "Is there blood? No? Broken bones? No? Suck it up."
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Mar 27, 2014 16:55
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Which is why more kids should do stuff like camping. I know so many parents of toddlers and young kinds who don't do outdoorsy stuff because of the hassle, so then their kids don't like getting dirty or hate to explore stuff. I take my kids to the desert a few times a year and let them clamber up rocks and fall face-first in the dirt. I also don't mind the current incarnation of safety playground equipment. It's not the tools, it's how you use them. If something has rounded edges or the slide is a little less scary as before, it doesn't change the fact that the structure can be turned into a pirate ship or schoolhouse.
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Mar 27, 2014 18:20
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I'm just bitter because they tore the giant concrete sombrero slide down in my hometown.
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Mar 27, 2014 18:32
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